No Matter What
by PhantomofDeath99
Summary: Principal Forewood looked at the broken girl in front of him. He just wanted one reason why he should let that boy walk away from his consequences again. Just one reason. "Because…I love him…and no matter what he's done to me and no matter how he acts, I still love him...Because no matter what, I'm still his best friend…" she sniffled, "and best friends take care of each other."
1. Chapter 1

Kim Crawford stared at her shoes, watching her legs swing back and forth and her laces bob as she sat in front of the school principal. He frowned at her, seeing her the way she was, covering herself up with a hoodie and some jeans, not at all like her old self who dressed to impress, but she still caught the attention of boys no matter where she went. But now it wasn't her good-looks. It was her bad ones. Her hand twitched, a long trailing gash running from her thumb up her arm was covered by a series of heavily wrapped bandages and carefully placed Band-Aids. She would've winced, done something if she could feel it. But she couldn't. Her other arm lay in a sling, the wrap tied tightly behind her neck as her arm lay inside another coat of bandages and a splint, hanging limply. Along her face was a dirty red hand print, indicating she'd been slapped and her lip was bleeding in the corner, causing her pain every time she tried to speak. This was why she was sitting in front of the principal. Not because she'd done something bad, but because someone else had done something bad to her.

You might wonder now, who did this to her. And if you asked, she'd look at you with lifeless brown orbs, a million shades of emotions running through before she settled with betrayal as she answered, "Jack Brewer."

_It was in the early minutes of lunch. Kim had just finished putting her books into her locker and was heading towards the cafeteria when she heard scuffling and fighting. She looked longingly into the room, really wanting to go eat something, but she knew she couldn't leave someone prey to the bullies around the school. Especially now that someone new had joined their ranks. She bounded up the hallway, listening carefully for the fight, ready to be the heroine again, before she heard three words that changed her mood completely._

"…_Jack…please…no!"_

_Kim quickly raced around the corner, running on to the scene to see Eddie pressed up against the lockers by Jack, clutching his stomach as the brunette boy prepared to punch him again. You might wonder what happened to him. Well no one knew. One minute he was Jack, the next he was the school bully, Black Jack, they called him, because he wasn't the Jack that they once knew, the Jack that was full of light and love and forgiveness. He was dark. Kim glared at him, walking right up to him and pulling his fist back only for him to spin on her, slamming her into the lockers. She looked to Eddie, clearly telling him to get the hell out of there and so he did. Jack turned to look at him run and was about to give chase when Kim slapped him._

_He held his cheek a moment, shocked that she'd found the courage to do that. He'd seen her moping around the halls. She wasn't herself anymore. She wasn't the ubber confident Kim Crawford who would kick any guy in the balls if they looked at her funny. She still did karate and cheerleading, but she'd given up on looking pretty with her new daily abuse. After Jack turned bully, she along with the rest of the Bobby Wasabi Warriors, became his targets. His toys. His play things and his punching bags. But Kim always got the worst of it. Because as much as she hated it, hated who he was, she couldn't hate __**him**__. She always defended the others and got the shit beaten out of her, but she never fought back. Until today._

_He smiled at her, stickily sweet before Kim's head was flung to the side, her cheek burning as the sound of the slap echoed in the empty hallway. The old Jack would've never hurt her. But this wasn't him. This was the bully. The predator underneath the goodness. The dark side to __**her**__ Jack. This was __**Black Jack**__. "Now we match, __**Kimmy**__." He'd sneered as she glared at him. It was her famous death glare. The one she gave anyone who called her 'Kimmy' but Jack had grown used to it. She glared at him every time he hurt her or one of their friends. But he didn't care. He just continued. Smiling again, the same sticky sweet smile that promised her pain, no matter what she did, he dug his fingers into her arm and she felt something sharp puncture her skin, being dragged down. She whimpered, tears burning in her eyes, but she refused to cry in front of him. She refused to give him the satisfaction. He stared her in the eyes the whole time, refusing to miss a minute of her pain. He raised his hand up and she saw the weapon. A pocket knife. He'd __**stabbed**__ her with a __**pocket knife**__ and dragged it through her arm. Even worse, it was the pocket knife she'd given him for one of his birthdays. "Got to use it for ya Kimmy!" He grinned and she glared firmly. She wanted to hate him, to punch him, to loathe him like others did. She wanted to be like them and have the ability to hate. But she couldn't. She could hate any other person, but she couldn't hate Jack. "How could you!" She'd spat. She'd literally spat in his face and he just stood there grinning at her. Then her front was pressed against the lockers, her arm bent behind her back as he leaned forward, whispering in her ear, "Just as easily as I could do this…" _

_Some teachers had come running when they heard her screaming. She was sitting there, clutching her arm in agony and instantly, they knew what'd happened. It was always the same person. Jack. They'd taken her to the nurse and once she was finished, they'd taken her to the principal. Jack was there already, sitting outside waiting to be punished when he saw Kim walk in. He stared at her for a moment, seeing the tear marks on her face and the pain in her eyes and she'd sworn, for a second, just one second, she saw the old Jack. The regret that swept across his face when he saw what he'd done was gone as soon as it came, but it gave her hope. And now here she sat. With the principal. Again._

"Kim," he started, sighing when he saw the determination in her features. It would be the same as always. He would ask her what she wanted Jack to be punished with, if she wanted to call the police and press charges for abuse, and she would say 'no'. She wouldn't give him a reason, she would just say 'no'. And she'd say it so quietly it would be almost undetectable, but he would know because it was what she always said. Then she would leave, heading back to class and he would bring Jack in. He would talk to him, explain that Kim didn't want to call the police, press charges or have Jack punished, and then he would threaten him. He would say if Jack hurt the girl again, he'd be arrested no matter what she said. But it was an empty threat and they both knew it, because Kim wouldn't _let_ Jack get arrested. She wouldn't _let_ Jack get hurt. She'd rather hurt herself then do something to hurt Jack. And they all knew it. And he would get away with it and do it again, and again, and again, and it would never stop.

"Kim, I think it's best if I call the—" "No." She looked up from her feet, staring at him as she shook her head firmly, dull blonde locks falling into her face. "No, I don't want Jack to be punished. It isn't necessary." The principal looked at her firmly, frowning again as he stared her down, arms crossed over his suit. "Yes it is. Mr Brewer cannot get away with this, Kimberly. It isn't right." "Neither is putting him in jail—" "Give me one reason!" he snapped and Kim flinched. In all the time she'd spent with the principal, Mr Forewood, which was quite a lot in recent months, he'd never yelled at her. He'd never been angry with her. Only patient. But maybe patience only lasted so long. He seemed to calm himself when he saw her jump and breathed in deeply before requesting again, "Just give me one reason why I should let this continue." He knew that if anything, he would be the only one to stop this happening. Kim's parents worked abroad a lot more now and hadn't been around for her hospital trips and they hadn't seen all her injuries and bruises and bashes. They hadn't seen what the monster of a boy had done to their daughter. But Mr Forewood had, and Kim was one of his star students, his best, and he didn't like it that she'd lost herself and just surrendered to the abuse. He wouldn't stand for it anymore, unless she gave him a reason. A damn good one too.

"Because…I…I…" he hushed her with his eyes, smiling lightly at her as tears flashed to her eyes and her voice wobbled. She was going to cry. He'd seen her do it a lot in his office, or the nurse's office, whenever Jack had hurt her mostly. He just eventually gave her a spare key, offering his office to be her place of solitude. She was so much like a daughter to him, like his own daughter, grown up now, but still. "Take your time, Kim." She nodded, letting the tears just drip down her face as she steadied her breathing. "Because…_I love him_…and no matter what he's done to me and no matter how he acts, I still love him. I know he doesn't love me, and I can't change that and I can't make him love me. But I don't _care!_ Because no matter how he feels about me, if he even likes me at all, or if he hates me, if he doesn't want to be my friend, it doesn't matter. Because no matter what, I'm still his best friend…" she sniffled, the words beginning to be blocked out by her sobs before she whispered, _"and best friends take care of each other."_


	2. Chapter 2

**So, at many people's request, I have added another chapter to No Matter What. This is now a two-shot and two-shot only, but if someone wants to use this and make a huge story out of it, message me, I've already handed over my other one-shot to that. Anyway, here it is, the closing chapter. After I posted the other one, I kinda thought of what Jack would do, and my reviewer 'The truth behind her eyes', suggested the idea also. Thanks to all the people who favourited this and followed both me and the story, I really appreciate the encouragement. Also, a bajillion thanks to everyone who reviewed, you are all awesome. So...here it is...**

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Jack shifted in his seat, watching Kim walk in. He'd heard her scream, heard her cry out for pain that he'd caused, and he'd simply escorted himself to the office like normal. Because for a few months now, this _was normal_. Him hurting her was normal, her screaming was normal, her pain was _normal_. And it shouldn't have been. But in all of the time he'd spent hurting her, he'd never seen her cry. And yet here she was, walking towards the principal's office, bandaged and broken. But he didn't care about that. He cared that he'd made her _cry_. Kim Crawford never cried. Not when she was his Kimmy, not when she was with another boy, not when she was by herself. She never cried. It was beneath her, a sign of weakness, of loss and of being broken. And she didn't like it. She wouldn't submit to it. And yet she was here, fresh tear marks down her face, though they had faded to the point where they weren't noticeable, he still saw them. Because deep down he cared. Deep down he didn't want to hurt her. But there was nothing stopping him, so he did. And he did it again, and again, and again, because no one was stopping him. Because Kim _wouldn't_ stop him.

She'd been inside a few seconds when he heard her firmly say 'no' and he found himself leaning up against the door, listening for her voice. Most would say he just wanted to know if he was in trouble or not, but he knew he wasn't, he just wanted to hear her. It didn't matter if she was upset or defending him, it just mattered that she wasn't talking to him in hatred and betrayal and disappointment. She was just talking. He crouched closer to the door, pressing his head against the wood of the door. It didn't matter that he was eavesdropping, the secretaries were too far off to notice, there were no other kids around and there were no teachers. He could do what he wanted, anything he wanted except leaving and vandalism.

_"No, I don't want Jack to be punished. It isn't necessary."_ He frowned. Of course it was necessary, even he knew it was necessary and he was the one going to be punished. It seemed the principal agreed as he firmly growled, _"Yes it is. Mr Brewer cannot get away with this, Kimberly. It isn't right." "Neither is putting him in jail—"_ Jack shook his head. That may be a bit harsh, but it was probably a good thing to do. Even in all his cockiness and cruelty, Jack knew he had over stepped the mark in beating her. In abusing her and betraying her. But he had done it so many times that it seemed like routine. It didn't matter and it was pointless to change it, because it would keep happening for the same reason. He wasn't stopped._ "Give me one reason!"_ He focused in on the principal, listening with unbelievable caution as he heard him snap at her, yelling at her. It was clear Kim had been testing his patience, constantly pushing for Jack to go unpunished. And patience only lasted so long. It only took so many tries and shoves before it broke. The tell-tale sign of the chair squeaking indicated he'd frightened her and the sharp intake of breath told Jack Mr Forewood knew it too. _ "Just give me one reason why I should let this continue."_

He braced himself for an answer, carefully shifting his weight to hear it clearly as he too tried to understand why Kim would just let it continue. It's not like she owed him anything. She was free to do as she pleased, and so was he, even if it included sending him to jail. She had every right she'd ever had and was more than capable of letting him get what was coming to him. She'd always believed in karma. But where was the karma coming for him on this one? Nothing bad had happened to him, though Mr Forewood had offered for that to be arranged on numerous occasions. But she always stopped it, _no matter what_. _"Because…I…I…,"_ she choked and Jack felt a lump for in his throat. She was going to cry again. She was going to cry and it was all his fault. Her voice couldn't even deceive the notion of her crying like it once could and he felt himself falling steeper into a hell he didn't imagine possible when he'd changed. _"Take your time, Kim."_ His breathing hitched, readying himself for it. Why on earth would she protect him when he'd failed at doing the same thing, and hurt her himself?

_"Because…__**I love him**__…"_ she stated and he failed to hold in a gasp. He almost missed the rest of her rant as he registered the words in his mind, but he quickly snapped back as she continued. _"…and no matter what he's done to me and no matter how he acts, I still love him. I know he doesn't love me, and I can't change that and I can't make him love me. But I don't __**care!**__ Because no matter how he feels about me, if he even likes me at all, or if he hates me, if he doesn't want to be my friend, it doesn't matter. Because no matter what, I'm still his best friend…"_ she sniffled and his heart, which had stopped beating, shattered. She had loved him. She still _did_ love him. And he hurt her. He hurt her more than physically, more than mentally, he hurt her emotionally.

Jack had been behind her walls; he'd taken their place and protected her from everything, or at least tried. But it hadn't been easy. It had taken time and trust and eventually, the last brick crumbled and it was him protecting her, him caring for her, him loving her. But he'd never thought of the idea that he'd cause her pain. That he'd turn on her and wouldn't even give her the chance to build her walls again. He'd taken their place and she couldn't build them back up, not when someone had broken through them and showed her so much love, or what she thought was love, what she obviously didn't believe was love anymore. It wasn't that she wouldn't defend herself, it was that she _couldn't_. Her walls had turned on her. Her protection now smothered her, and he felt every drop of guilt, of his own venom, still his heart as she whispered lightly, words that held so much meaning, so much care, so much intensity that Jack could barely stop himself from collapsing, **_"and best friends take care of each other."_**

It was in the middle of lunch the next day that he'd seen her. Her eyes were red as she exited the girl's toilets and he couldn't bear the thought that she'd been crying again. His shoulders tensed as he walked towards her. She looked up at the last minute, hearing his shoes squeak on the floor and the fear that flashed through her eyes weighed him down in his spot. She took a step back, out of pure instinct and his heart grew ice cold. He'd done this to her. _"Kimmy,"_ he whispered, sounding as broken as she was on the inside. His eyes watered as she shook her head, taking several steps back that he matched in two strides. His hands gripped her wrists, slipping down to hold hers when she tried to pull away. "Don't—don't call me…._that_…" Her eyes squeezed shut and he saw the salt trickle down her face, burning into her already pale skin. "Kimmy," he whispered again, lifting a hand to caress her cheek but she flinched. "Kimmy, _please,_ just _look at me_." She couldn't deny that he sounded different, he wasn't Black Jack anymore, he sounded like Jack. Like _her_ Jack. Like Jack after every time he'd called her 'stupid' or a 'typical blonde'. He sounded like Jack after every time he'd hurt her. But it just hurt her more that she was so easily deceived by him. It couldn't be her Jack. Her Jack would've come back after he first hurt her; he would've begged her forgiveness and sacrificed himself to the mercy of Mr Forewood for hurting her so badly that she'd cried. But this wasn't her Jack— "Kim, will you just look at me, _please_, I'm _begging_ you!" His voice cracked, and she was starting to think she'd imagined it, starting to allow herself to believe she'd imagined it when she heard him gulp back a sob as he pressed his lips to her forehead. "Kimmy, I'm _so_ sorry."

She shook her head again, pulling away from him as she backed up the hallway, watching him with an unwavering gaze. He'd beaten her for so long without apologizing, without caring, why would he now? "No—no, you're _not!_ And….and that's just the—the worst bit! Because…because, I'll forgive you…and," the sob escaped her lips as the tears slipped down her face silently, "_you know that!"_ Her words were bitter, covered in self-hatred and it hit him like a knife that she thought he'd use her feelings to manipulate her. But then again, he'd done everything to hurt her, to manipulate her, to break her, and it shouldn't surprise him, hurt him. But it _did_. It hurt that he'd scarred her so much that she wouldn't believe the truth when she saw it, wouldn't look at him, wouldn't recognise the good Jack when he'd returned. "Kimmy, I'm sorry…I'm _so_ sorry…please…" He stalked towards her until he was in front of her, tears of his own slipping down his cheeks as he gazed at her. She shut her eyes again, refusing him as he placed his hands on her cheeks, holding her face gently. "…Kimmy…" "Why…" Why what? His question seemed to be anticipated as she scrunched up her face before releasing it, pushing away from him again as she wiped furiously at her tears. "Why did you _change!_ Why did you _hurt_ me, why did you _leave _me! Why do you want me to _forgive_ you?" Her eyes were red around the edges, the brown in them dull, lifeless and empty, like they were a shell waiting to be filled with light. With love.

The question stumped him as he wavered in his step, trying to think. He didn't have a reason for any of her questions. He didn't have an answer; he didn't have an explanation, an excuse. Nothing. He had nothing, because though he may not have realized it, he'd lost everything when he'd lost Kim. "…I—I don't know, Kim…I just did…" Her eyes collected fresh tears and her anger diminished. She'd known he wouldn't have a reason, because there wasn't one. He'd just changed. And he realized now, she just wanted a reason so it didn't seem like her fault. Like she'd driven him away. "…wh—why do you want me to…_forgive_ you…" She stuttered and he stepped forward, quickly cupping her face in his hands again as her eyes shut again, trying to block the tears on their escape. He wiped them away with gentle hands as he leaned down, pressing a gentle kiss to her lips, shocking her. He pulled away before any reaction could be made and looked at her with those smouldering eyes. "…Because no matter what Kimmy…I have always, _always_, loved you…" he whispered as her eyes looked up at him with child-like innocence. She wanted to believe him, she was desperately craving to, and if he just—"Always, Kimmy, _no matter what,_" he whispered again, pressing his lips to her forehead before pulling her into a hug, letting her bury her face into his chest. He'd never leave her again, never hurt her again. He'd never be _that_ person again. He'd love her and hold her; he'd kiss her and treasure her. No matter what.


End file.
